The Walking Dead, adapted from the Robert Kirkman graphic novel of the same name, follows the exploits of Georgian survivors of a plague which reanimates the dead into flesh-eating “walkers.”

In Season 4, Rick and fellow survivors–including Daryl (Norman Reedus), Glenn (Steven Yeun), and Maggie (Lauren Cohan)–found a seemingly safe shelter in an abandoned prison. That dream, however, didn’t last, as Season 3 nemesis The Governor (David Morrissey) returned with his own band of fighters to take the prison for himself.

Forced out of their routine, split up into smaller groups, and dispersed into the wild, Rick and company face extreme danger–and the cast and producers are teasing that no beloved character is safe.

“The second half is going to be something astounding that people are never going to see coming,” teases [Danai] Gurira, who takes center stage in the midseason premiere. “There’s some stunning episodes that really tap into how dire this world is.”

Norman Reedus, who plays zombie-killing machine Daryl Dixon, adds that, “It’s some of our best episodes, some of our darkest and some of our best written. People are really going to lose their minds on this one. It’s really bananas.”

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“They’ve all lost their home, they’ve lost each other and their sense of safety,” explains showrunnerScott M. Gimple, who specializes in pivotal moments — like when the long-lost child Sophia (Madison Lintz) emerged from a barn as a walker in season two’s midseason finale.

“How is this going to change everyone? There’s a lot of different stories that come out of this, and we’ve got one for every character,” says Gimple.